The Best Music of 2021 (So Far)

Qwinn – Congratulations

For setting boundaries to protect yourself after having been pushed to the edge (maybe multiple times over), Qwinn says, “Congratulations.” Celebrating the acknowledgment of self-worth and the discovery of one’s true self, this track uplifts listeners and envelops them in a blanket of nostalgic boppy and synthy ’80s sounds. (Read more…)


Horsebath – Often

Smouldering with the fire of a flamenco ballad, cowboy crooners Horsebath take east coast instrumentation and inject it with romantic Spanish influence. Just try not to swoon.


Fuzzed Out – My Own Worst Enemy

One unexpected gift of the last year has been Sloan’s Patrick Pentland releasing some tucked away gems under the moniker of Fuzzed Out. The release of “My Own Worst Enemy” caught just the right moment for a catchy track about crippling self doubt and anxiety. (Read more…)


Mike Trask – My My, Bye Bye

Mike Trask undergoes a bit of an existential crisis on “My My, Bye Bye” but finds that life might just be fairly palatable, provided the circus is in town. It’s essentially “a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush,” but a whole lot catchier. (Read more…)


Andre Pettipas and the Giants – Homesick

Andre Pettipas and the Giants brought in the legendary Christopher Thorn (Blind Melon) to bless “Homesick” with some delicious riffs. Their third single to be released from their album, No Fools, No Fun, “Homesick” materialized late one night, thousands of miles from home, in a lonely hotel room after a lacklustre gig. Almost discarded as a “dumb, sad song,” it might be the best track of the album. (Read more…)


Golden Cinema – Dead Ringer

Golden Cinema tapped a lot of their music industry friends for a bit of feedback on this bass-driven bop. With a cameo-ridden video, the band has us wondering if these really are famous singers or just people that look like them? (Read more…)


Joce Reyome – Cross My Heart

Joce Reyome’s voice is a force of nature. Powerful and electrifying, it radiates alongside the blues-rock guitar of their debut single, “Cross My Heart,” and breathes new life into a classic sound. (Read more…)


Virginia Fudge – Dragonfly

Produced by Meg Warren, Virginia Fudge’s “Dragonfly” is a slow build that brings us to a state of toe-curling ecstasy as we’re laid out with the full weight of an organ and the heart-wrenching uncertainty that comes as a relationship slowly slips away. (Read more…)


Mallory Johnson & Twin Kennedy – Wise Woman

“Girl power shouldn’t come with a price,” Mallory Johnson sings as she and Twin Kennedy lament the hurdles they’ve had to overcome as women in this world while also seeking to uplift future generations with her own words of advice. (Read more…)


Dave Sampson – All My Friends

“All my friends got a mortgage and some kids, got a labradoodle dog, probably think there’s something wrong with me,” sings Dave Sampson on this fantastically catchy and relatable song about his social life evaporating the moment he turned thirty. (Read more…)

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